How To Defeat Adam Smasher In Cyberpunk 2077
Cyberpunk 2077 is finally here after more than eight years of hype. CD Projekt Red has created a lavishly detailed dystopian nightmare in Night City, and it's recommended that you take your time exploring it and savoring all the little details. Most likely, you're about to sink hundreds of hours into doing just that. Unless you're a speedrunner, beating the game isn't high on your to-do list right now.
Whatever year it is by the time you do reach the endgame, you'll square off against Adam Smasher. He's a mercenary working for the Arasaka Corporation, and he's the game's final boss. Defeating him will (spoiler) finally avenge the death of your hologram friend, Johnny Silverhand. The Adam Smasher boss fight doesn't really throw anything new at you, so if you've beaten a few bosses in FPS games, you should be able to handle him. But if you're unprepared, you could be in for a long battle.
As a heavily armored cyborg, Adam Smasher is way more machine than man. It's nearly impossible for him to feel pain. Let's change that, shall we?
Prepare for the fight
Adam Smasher is the boss at the end of either the Totalimmortal quest or the Belly of Smasher quest, depending on your choices. The game always tells you when you're underleveled for a quest, but for this one, you'll want to be around Level 18, putting it in the "moderate danger" category.
Once you arrive at Yorinobu's office inside the Arasaka Building, you'll immediately experience a Relic malfunction, which will render much of your cyberware inoperable during the fight. Without it, you'll need to finish this the old-fashioned way, with guns, medpacks, and grenades. The weapons you have available will somewhat depend on how you've played the rest of the game, but any playstyle can defeat him.
Smasher is a cyborg with many different weapons, and he's dangerous at any distance. You'll be able to weaken him by destroying some of those weapons, though. Otherwise, his main weak point is obvious: his conveniently unprotected head. Aim for it.
You should use cover, but the server-looking objects that dot Yorinobu's cavernous office are destructible. However, the office's columns don't erode. If you've specialized in any of the game's Tech Weapons, use them to shoot Smasher through these columns while you stay covered.
Tactics
The fight has two phases. The first phase is between you and Smasher. His favorite type of attack during this phase is a devastating punch with his titanium fist. Don't let him get too close. Keep your distance, but take care to avoid blasts from his smart gun on his left arm, which uses bullets that track you. During this phase, focus your fire on his right arm. Shoot it enough times to destroy it and take away his melee attacking ability.
Once his arm is down and his health is lowered, phase two will begin when Smasher jetpacks away to an elevated position and calls in Arasaka henchmen to take a crack at you. They'll arrive in waves of two. Like in many boss fights, it's a good idea to eliminate these lesser enemies quickly and even up the numbers. Frag grenades are effective.
But don't take your eye off Smasher. He'll shoot homing missiles at you from a shoulder-mounted launcher. Focus fire on it, and it will fall off, too. Once his two primary attack modes are down, the fight will be much easier. Blast away at his squishy head, and he'll go down.